


Diplomatic Relations

by AriWrote



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Established Relationship, He's going to regret it in the morning, M/M, Ryoma screws up, Secret Relationship, not too bad though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-15
Updated: 2016-05-15
Packaged: 2018-06-08 07:22:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6844699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AriWrote/pseuds/AriWrote
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ryoma's walked the path that led to Xander's room numerous times and he knew the hallways of Castle Shirasagi like the back of his hand. He really shouldn't be able to get lost by now.<br/>-<br/><i>“You’re,” Ryoma paused, his brain still trying to register the person before him, “not Xander.”</i><br/>-<br/>A midnight rendezvous ends up going horribly wrong when Ryoma stumbles into the wrong Royal's bedroom. He's not sure how he's going to live this one down.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Diplomatic Relations

The stars shone bright in the sky and maybe on another day Ryoma would have taken more time to admire them. As it was, every minute that he spent stargazing meant another minute he risked being caught. It’d been pure luck that he’d managed to sneak past his (if he was being honest, excessively) diligent retainers tonight. He couldn’t mess up now. 

Still, even if he was on a time sensitive schedule at the moment, maybe Ryoma could convince Xander to join him for some stargazing at a later date. He’d just have to be very persuasive.

The halls were silent as Ryoma passed through them. It might have been disconcerting if it wasn’t a scene that Ryoma was familiar with. For once, he was thankful for all those sleepless nights he spent exploring the castle. He knew these hallways by heart and could probably have walked them blind. With the stars as his only source of light, he practically was.

He was nearly there. One more turn and Xander’s room would be at the end of the hall. Xander had promised he’d dismiss his retainers and Ryoma could only hope that they weren’t as stubborn as his own. When he turned the final corner, he let out a sigh of relief upon the realization that it was empty. There was no retainer in sight to stop him as he made his way down the hall. His smile grew wide.

At this point, maybe he should have realized that everything was going a little too well. Something was bound to go wrong at any moment. However, he only came to that conclusion when he slid open the door to what he assumed was Xander’s room and found no sign of the Nohrian Prince.

Instead he found a Nohrian Princess. Camilla lay on the bed, eyes trained on the book in her hands. She was dressed in something silky and thin that Ryoma assumed must be what the Nohrians considered suitable sleepwear. It didn’t look as if it would offer much protection against the cold night, but Camilla had pushed most of the blankets to the other side of the bed into some kind of pile. For a moment, Ryoma thought he might have seen the pile shuffle, but he shrugged it off as a trick of the light.

She glanced up from her book a moment later, an expression of confusion adorning her face. Ryoma stumbled backwards as he tried to recall where he might have gone wrong. Had he misremembered the hallways? Had he miscounted? He could have sworn this was Xander’s room.

“What a surprise! May I ask what brings you here so late, Prince Ryoma?”  Camilla sounded amused, but her words were colored with annoyance. She closed the book she’d been reading and placed it on her lap in order to give Ryoma her full attention.

“You’re,” Ryoma paused, his brain still trying to register the person before him, “not Xander.”

Camilla blinked at the dazed prince and frowned. She looked deep in thought, as if she was trying to figure out why the Hoshidan prince would burst into her room at such a late hour and then complain that she wasn’t her brother. When it clicked, her smile turned devious. She moved off the bed and made her way towards Ryoma, “How astute of you. What gave it away? Was it the hair? The height? Or was it the boobs?”

Camilla placed her hand on the door and leaned towards Ryoma. Her voice was hushed as she spoke, “Something tells me you’re very, very familiar with my brother’s chest, Prince Ryoma.”

Ryoma could feel the heat on his cheeks. This hadn’t been what he was expecting when he’d snuck out tonight. “I don’t… I- What are you insinuating here, Princess Camilla?”

Camilla rolled her eyes, “I’m insinuating that you might want to check across the hall. I think you’ll prefer what you find there.”

With that, Camilla slid the door shut and left Ryoma gaping at the space she had previously occupied. The giggling he could hear from behind the door did nothing to ease his embarrassment.

It took him a few moments to gather the courage to check the room Camilla had pointed out. A part of him feared that she’d only led him astray again and he’d opened the door to find the wrong prince glaring at him. He wasn’t interested in alerting the entire Nohrian royal family of what was going on between their older brother and him. He was already planning ways to avoid Camilla at breakfast. It’d been considerably harder to extend that to the entire family.

When he finally got the courage to open it, Xander was there waiting for him on the other side. He sat on the edge of his bed; half of his clothes appeared to have already found their home on the ground. Ryoma couldn’t help the sigh that escaped him and the words that tumbled out after he caught sight of Xander, “Thank the Gods, you aren’t Leo.”

Xander’s lips quirked up, more amused than seductive, “Should I be concerned you were expecting my little brother?”

Ryoma slid the door closed and bridged the distance between him and Xander. With Xander sitting on the bed and Ryoma standing above him, Xander had to look up at him to keep eye contact. Ryoma would be lying if he said the sight didn’t excite him. It was such a shame he could only see it during moments like these. His hand curled around the back of Xander’s head to lead him forward. He leaned close and mumbled against Xander’s lips, “Of course not, just…”

The first kiss was gentle, an excuse to simply enjoy the presence of the other. Neither side seemed to want to push it any further. After months spent apart, all they wanted was to be near each other, to relearn each other before they had to split once more at the end of this trip. Xander’s hands intertwined with Ryoma’s hair and the peaceful moment was broken by near-moan that escaped from Ryoma’s lips when Xander pulled. Ryoma tried to deepen the kiss, only to find that Xander pulled back.

It took Ryoma a moment to realize that when Xander leaned away from the kiss, it hadn’t been to grant better access to his neck, no matter how tempting it was. That didn’t stop him from trying. The hand on his mouth did, however.

“Just?” Xander’s expression was amused even as Ryoma glared at him between wistful glances at his exposed shoulder. Using the hand that already covered Ryoma’s mouth, Xander curled it around Ryoma’s chin and forced the other man to look him in the eyes. He brushed his thumb against Ryoma’s bottom lip and his smile was devilish as he said, “Not until you explain yourself.”

Ryoma grumbled a few curses, but eventually explained, “You might want to avoid your sister for a while, given recent events.”

“Recent events?”

Here was the part Ryoma wasn’t looking forward to. “I may have accidentally stumbled into her room instead of yours.”

Ryoma wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting from Xander, but it certainly wasn’t what he got. Xander’s eyes went wide and he let out a soft noise of surprise, but beyond that there was nothing. A moment passed before Xander finally said something, “Which sister?”

“Camilla.”

Xander let out a soft laugh and fell backwards on to the bed. Ryoma, his chin still held within Xander’s grip, followed. On reflex, his hands went out in front of him, preventing him from narrowly colliding with Xander. Xander’s hand fell from Ryoma’s chin to cover his mouth as the laughter continued, “Thank the Gods. I don’t know how I would have handled Elise.”

“You’re not upset?”

Xander glanced up at him, confusion taking the place of amusement, “Why would I? She can’t do much to me besides force me endure a few impolite jokes about what we may be up to. I doubt she’ll pass that up, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. I’m more concerned about you.”

“Me?”

“You must be well aware of how… protective my sister can get over her family,” Xander said.  

Ryoma nodded. Of course he was aware. He’d seen her on the battlefield, wild-eyed and determined to protect Elise, Leo, Corrin, and even one time when the prince had let his guard down for a moment, Xander. She was terrifying when it came to dealing with those who threatened her family. Ryoma just couldn’t see how _he_ might compare to a hoard of Vallites, “And? I feel like there’s something I’m not getting here.”

“And well, given how she was when Corrin started dating and don’t even get me started on Leo… I think the one who should avoid her is you.”

“You’re her older brother, though,” Ryoma replied. He could understand Camilla’s desire to protect her siblings. He’d even reacted similarly to her when he’d heard about Corrin, but Xander wasn’t a younger sibling to watch over. Surely she wouldn’t handle him the same?

“You tell her that and see where it gets you,” Xander shrugged. He didn’t look an ounce sympathetic for the apparent hell that was going to be unleashed onto Ryoma, “I’ve just given up hope.”

Ryoma sighed and let himself collapse onto Xander. The huff Xander let out as Ryoma’s full weight pushed down on him was almost worth it. He grumbled more to Xander’s shoulder than to the man himself, “You sound as if you spoken from experience. Has she done this before?”

“Yes, but the people I was involved with were not heir to the throne of their kingdom. Maybe she’ll spare you a little considering,” Ryoma could feel the laughter shaking Xander’s shoulders. His hand carded through Ryoma’s hair, “and if it comes to it, I can always try and protect you.”

“I’m so lucky,” he grumbled into Xander’s shoulder. He hoped the sarcasm still managed to get through as muffled as it was. He couldn’t help the smile already forming on his lips, though. He was thankful that Xander couldn’t see it.

“Now, if we’re done talking about my sister,” Xander said, using the hand still intertwined with Ryoma’s hair to direct Ryoma’s eyes toward his. The smile on his face sent a shiver down Ryoma’s back, “I doubt this was all you had in mind when you snuck in.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was really difficult to write for some reason. I could have been done with this a lot earlier if I didn't have stare at a wall and contemplate my life choices so often.


End file.
